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This page can be viewed at http://www.historycommons.org/context.jsp?item=a082009baucuskillbill
This is a scalable context timeline. It contains events related to the event August 20, 2009: Key Senate Democrat Committed to Bipartisan Health Care Reform Bill, Says Republican Leadership 'Doing Its Utmost to Kill This Bill'. You can narrow or broaden the context of this timeline by adjusting the zoom level. The lower the scale, the more relevant the items on average will be, while the higher the scale, the less relevant the items, on average, will be.
The Senate Finance Committee, chaired by Senator Max Baucus (D-MT), holds a series of hearings about health care reform, on April 21, May 5, and May 12. In all, 41 experts testify, but none of them advocate the so-called "single-payer" form of health care, a system which essentially has the government providing health care insurance instead of private insurers—"Medicare for all Americans," as some characterize it. (Brown 5/5/2009; Single Payer Action 5/21/2009) The experts are from organizations like America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), the health industry's largest lobbying firm, and health insurers Blue Cross and Aetna. Some of the invited organizations employ former Baucus staff members. (Taibbi 9/3/2009) Baucus says that single-payer is "off the table," and will not be considered. (TPM Cafe 5/5/2009)
Health Industry Heavy Donors to Baucus - The nonpartisan organization Consumer Watchdog has reported that Baucus, one of the Senate's most important architects of Congressional health reform, has accepted more campaign contributions from the health insurance and pharmaceutical corporations than any other current Democratic member of the House or Senate. During the last two election cycles, he received $183,750 from health insurance companies and $229,020 from drug companies. (Single Payer Action 5/21/2009)
Protesters Disrupt Hearings - Protesters disrupt the hearings by standing up and shouting criticisms of the committee over its failure to bring single-payer into the discussion. Eight protesters are led out of the hearing room and later arrested. At one point, Baucus asks for more police officers to enforce security. The protests are organized by Healthcare Now, Physicians for a National Health Program, and Single Payer Action, all of whom support a single-payer, government-run health care system. One protester calls the hearings nothing more than "political theater." For his part, Baucus assures the audience, "I want you to know I care deeply about your views." (Brown 5/5/2009) The eight protesters spend around seven hours in jail. One, Dr. Margaret Flowers, later recalls: "It's funny, the policemen were all telling us their horror stories about health care. One was telling us about his mother who was 62 and lost her job and was uninsured, waiting to get Medicare when she was 65." The protesters are sentenced to six months' probation. Baucus later admits that not allowing single-payer advocates to participate in the hearings was a mistake; he will eventually agree to meet with a group of those advocates (see June 3, 2009).
Single-Payer Never Considered - In September, Rolling Stone reporter Matt Taibbi will note that Baucus, like President Obama and other prominent Democrats, has supported single-payer insurance in theory, but asserts such a proposal would never get through Congress. Journalist Russell Mokhiber, who advocates for single-payer as a member of Single Payer Action, later says that the Obama administration and Congressional Democrats made an agreement with health industry leaders months before considering legislation for health care reform that single-payer would not be part of their proposals. In return, Mokhiber will say, they asked the industry not to oppose their reform efforts, a request that the industry has generally not honored. (Taibbi 9/3/2009)
Senator Max Baucus (D-MT), the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee and a key player in the Democrats' health care reform process, defends his insistence on a bipartisan process that will produce reform supported by both Democrats and Republicans. Yet Baucus admits that Senate Republicans are almost uniformly committed to killing reform outright. Baucus is a member of the Finance Committee's "Gang of Six," a group of three conservative Democrats and three Republicans who are working to craft a reform proposal. "I just think if it is bipartisan, it's more sustainable, it's more durable, long-lasting," Baucus says. "There will be more buy-in around the country. We're going to make some mistakes. If it's bipartisan, it will be easier to fix the mistakes, work together to fix the mistakes. It's just better for the country." However, he says: "The Republican leadership in the Senate and in the House is doing its utmost to kill this bill. They are putting intense political pressure on Chuck Grassley, Olympia Snowe, and Mike Enzi [the three Republican members of the "Gang of Six"], to bow out, because they want to kill it. So I've got a challenge ahead of me to work out all this on policy as we go through these meetings. The other thing is the politics of it: 'People, this is the right thing to do for America. I know you're under intense political pressure, but do the right thing. I know it's easy for me to say right now, because I'm getting beat up by both sides, but not nearly as much as you are by the Republican hierarchy.'" Baucus says it is important to craft a bill that can garner the 60 votes needed to defeat a filibuster, which the Republicans will almost certainly invoke to try to delay or kill any reform bill. He does not support the reconciliation process that would allow the bill to pass with a 51-vote majority. (Jilani 8/21/2009; Harrington 8/21/2009)
The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) acknowledges it has funded a series of television advertisements in support of legislation primarily written by Max Baucus (D-MT), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, to reform US health care. The television ads are part of an agreement between the Obama administration, Baucus, and PhRMA in June, where the organization agreed to various givebacks and discounts designed to reduce America's pharmaceutical spending by $80 billion over 10 years. PhRMA then set aside $150 million for advertising to support health care legislation. More progressive House Democrats such as Henry Waxman (D-CA) are pushing for stiffer drug industry givebacks than covered in the deal. PhRMA is led by Billy Tauzin, a former Republican congressman. Until recently, the organization spent some $12 million on ads by an offshoot coalition called Americans for Stable Quality Care, and aired television ads such as "Eight Ways Reform Matters to You." PhRMA's new ads will specifically support the Baucus bill. Many are critical of the deal, with James Love of the progressive research group Knowledge Ecology charging, "Essentially what the US got was not $80 billion, but $150 million in Obama campaign contributions." (Wilson 9/12/2009) Investigative reporter Matt Taibbi agrees with Love, accusing the White House of colluding with Baucus and Tauzin's PhRMA to orchestrate a "big bribe" in exchange for the Democrats' dropping of drug-pricing reform in the Baucus bill. Taibbi writes that in June, White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel met with representatives from PhRMA and drug companies such as Abbott Laboratories, Merck, and Pfizer to cut their deal. Tauzer later told reporters that the White House had "blessed" a plan involving the $150 million in return for the White House's agreement to no longer back government negotiations for bulk-rate pharmaceuticals for Medicare, and to no longer support the importation of inexpensive drugs from Canada. Taibbi writes that the White House worked with Baucus and PhRMA to undercut Waxman's attempts to give the government the ability to negotiate lower rates for Medicare drugs. PhRMA's ads are being aired primarily in the districts of freshmen Democrats who are expected to face tough re-election campaigns, and in the districts of conservative "Blue Dog" Democrats, who have sided with Baucus, Obama, and PhRMA to oppose the Waxman provision in favor of PhRMA's own provision, which would ban the government from negotiating lower rates for Medicare recipients. (Taibbi 9/14/2009)
Max Baucus (D-MT), the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, releases his committee's final version of health care reform, a version known as the "chairman's mark." None of the Republicans on the committee support the bill (known as the "America's Healthy Future Act," or AHFA), and some Democrats, including John D. Rockefeller (D-WV), have serious questions about it as well. Baucus says: "The $856 billion dollar package will not add to the federal deficit. The Finance Committee will meet to begin voting on the chairman's mark next week." An analysis by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) shows that the bill will actually "result in a net reduction in federal budget deficits of $49 billion over the 2010-2019 period." Senators Charles Grassley (R-IA) and Mike Enzi (D-WY) have said that they want a much smaller bill that imposes no fees on health insurance companies, prevents legal immigrants from gaining coverage for five years, and bans any federal coverage for abortions. The Baucus bill does not allow for federal monies to be used for abortions, as Republicans have insisted upon, with the exception of situations involving rape or incest. Illegal immigrants are not provided coverage through the bill; legal immigrants cannot get government subsidies and must wait five years before qualifying for Medicaid. Immigrants' citizenship status will be verified, as Republicans have requested. Another Republican provision, "tort reform" (efforts to reduce legal claims against doctors and HMOs), is part of the bill. There is no "public option" for government-financed health care for uninsured citizens, as Republicans and conservative Democrats have demanded. The bill allows for the purchasing of insurance across state lines, for "high-deductible" policies, and for so-called "high-risk pools," three provisions Republicans have demanded. And, beginning in 2014, federal monies will be made available "to all states to defray the costs of covering newly-eligible beneficiaries." (111th Congress, 1st Session 9/16/2009; Volsky 9/16/2009; Volsky 9/17/2009) Even after seeing a bill with so many inclusions they have asked for, Senate Republicans continue to insist that there is nothing in the bill they can support. (Volsky 9/17/2009)
President Obama meets with House Republicans in a meeting designed to bridge something of the gap between the two sides. During the meeting, Obama advises the House Republicans to put an end to the bitter partisan attacks they routinely launch at him and his administration if they are serious about wanting to work with the White House on health care reform. "If you were to listen to the debate, and frankly how some of you went after this bill, you'd think that this was some Bolshevik plot," he says. He continues: "If the way these issues are being presented by the Republicans is that this is some wild-eyed plot to impose huge government in every aspect of our lives, what happens is you guys then don't have a lot of room to negotiate with me. I mean, the fact of the matter is that many of you—if you voted with the administration on something—are politically vulnerable in your own base, in your own party. You've given yourselves very little room to work in a bipartisan fashion. Because, what you've been telling your constituents is: this guy's doing all kinds of crazy stuff that is going to destroy America." Obama calls the legislation to reform American health care "pretty centrist" and notes that it incorporates many aspects of Republican proposals (see April 21-May 12, 2009, August 20, 2009, September 12, 2009 and After, and September 16-17, 2009). He reminds the Republicans that they will need to negotiate with Democrats to incorporate some of what they want into the final legislation. "Most independent observers would say" it is "similar to what many Republicans proposed to Bill Clinton," Obama adds; many of the ideas in the legislation were first suggested in 1994 by then-Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole (R-KS). Obama tells the assemblage that their proposals on health care are largely comprised of "political assertions that aren't substantiated"; he reads from a summary GOP ideas booklet, and says that most of the claims of how Republican health care reforms would work are "not true." Mike Pence (R-IN) counters that the ideas in the booklet are "backed up precisely by the kind of detailed legislation that Speaker [Nancy] Pelosi [D-CA] and your administration have been busy ignoring for 12 months." Obama says several times that he has read Republican proposals, but cannot find evidence supporting their efficacy. Citing a GOP counter-proposal for the economic stimulus bill passed in 2009, he says, "I couldn't find credible economists who could back up the claims." Tom Price (R-GA) later tells a Daily Caller reporter that Obama is only listening to "leftist" economists. Amid the accusations, several Republicans, such as Peter Roskam (R-IL), complain that the Republicans have "really been stiff-armed by Speaker Pelosi… there really is this dynamic of frankly being shut out." Obama concludes the meeting by saying: "What I can do maybe to help is to try to bring Republican and Democratic leadership together on a more regular basis with me. That's, I think, a failure on my part, is to try to foster better communications even if there's disagreement. And I will try to see if we can do more of that this year." The meeting is described as "contentious" by the conservative news blog Daily Caller, with Republicans flinging accusations at Obama, and Obama answering them and returning accusations and admonishments of his own. After the meeting, Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI) says, "I give the president an enormous amount of credit, because I'm sure that there wasn't a person in the room that's been elected that hasn't had to go in to an adversarial setting, and be heavily outnumbered and yet stay that long and take those questions." Price says that many of his colleagues laughed when Obama told them he was not an ideologue, "because I don't think the American people believe that." (Volsky 1/29/2010; Ward 1/29/2010)
The New York Times publishes a large front-page story on America's "tea party" movement. The report is written by staff reporter David Barstow, who researched the story for five months, first joining a bus tour by the Tea Party Express (see August 28, 2009) and then staying for the month of October in and around Spokane, Washington, to interview tea party members and others, such as white supremacist militia members, who have some affiliation with tea party organizations. The first person he mentions is a retiree named Pam Stout, who once worked for federal housing programs and is now aghast at the government's handling of the economic crisis. She told Barstow that one day "she awoke to see Washington as a threat, a place where crisis is manipulated—even manufactured—by both parties to grab power." She went to a tea party rally, then a meeting of the Sandpoint Tea Party Patriots, where she surprised herself by nominating herself for president. Under her leadership, the Sandpoint group joined a coalition, Friends for Liberty, that includes representatives from Glenn Beck's 9/12 Project (see March 13, 2009 and After), the extremist, anti-Communist John Birch Society (JBS—see March 10, 1961 and December 2011), and the Oath Keepers (see March 9, 2009 and March 2010), a far-right militia organization. Stout told Barstow that her family worries that she has become enmeshed in a group of conspiracy theorists and ad hoc revolutionaries, but she said she has never felt more engaged. (Barstow 2/15/2010; Marx 2/18/2010)
Increasing Tilt towards Anti-Government Militia Ideology - Barstow writes that many tea party members are like Stout, with an inclination to conservative anti-government politics, but also with a fear of eventual government tyranny that has driven them to join the movement. "These people are part of a significant undercurrent within the tea party movement that has less in common with the Republican Party than with the Patriot movement," he writes, "a brand of politics historically associated with libertarians, militia groups, anti-immigration advocates, and those who argue for the abolition of the Federal Reserve. Urged on by conservative commentators, waves of newly minted activists are turning to once-obscure books and Web sites and discovering a set of ideas long dismissed as the preserve of conspiracy theorists, interviews conducted across the country over several months show." Many tea partiers hold former President Bush and President Obama in equal contempt, holding them jointly responsible for deliberately undermining the Constitution and the free market system "for the benefit of a shadowy international network of wealthy elites" (see February 4-8, 2010). Coalition groups like Friends of Liberty are "forming hybrid entities of tea parties and groups rooted in the Patriot ethos. A fear of government tyranny is one of the most common ideological threads running through virtually all tea party organizations."
Targeting Republicans as Well as Democrats - Barstow continues: "These coalitions are not content with simply making the Republican Party more conservative. They have a larger goal—a political reordering that would drastically shrink the federal government and sweep away not just Mr. Obama, but much of the Republican establishment, starting with Senator John McCain" and other Republicans whom they consider part of the "government conspiracy" to destroy democracy. While tea parties routinely target Democrats in elections, they are also targeting more moderate Republicans, especially those who support ideas or legislation that they feel is part of the "conspiracy." Republicans who supported the government bailouts of large corporations are being targeted, as are those who support global warming legislation or who have shown any impetus to work with the White House or with Congressional Democrats (see January 29, 2010). Barstow notes that the tea party movement is anything but homogenous and rigidly organized: "It is an amorphous, factionalized uprising with no clear leadership and no centralized structure." Some groups are "essentially appendages of the local Republican Party," but many are not. However, many of the beliefs espoused by individual tea partiers tend to be reflected in most groups. Not all believe that Obama wants to impose a dictatorship, with or without McCain's help, but many do. The frustration expressed by Stout in the economy and the government's response to it is echoed throughout tea party groups in every state.
Turning to Radical Ideologies and Conspiracy Theorists - One of the tea partiers' favorite thinkers is Fox News talk show host Glenn Beck (see March 29, 2009). Beck's often-revisionist, often-inaccurate opinions led many tea partiers to read the Federalist Papers (or, more often, right-wing blogs about the Federalist Papers), conspiracist "exposes" of the Federal Reserve, and the novels of Ayn Rand and George Orwell. Online resources tailored for tea party organizations provide a wealth of what Barstow calls "radical critiques of Washington." Two of the primary sites are ResistNet.com and InfoWars, both of which combine far-right ideology with a plethora of conspiracy theories covering everything from 9/11 and the Federal Reserve to the New World Order (see September 11, 1990). Some tea partiers are joining with militia groups, or forming their own, and making stockpiles of food, gold, and weaponry to prepare for the end of civilization. Many tea party leaders say they believe that a return to a strict adherence to constitutional law would solve most of the nation's problems, but many of them espouse a radical view of the Constitution, such as that delineated by radical Constitutional revisionist W. Cleon Skousen (first popularized among the tea party community by Beck—see 1963). Many want to completely do away with Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, the federal income tax, and most government agencies, all of which they say violate the Constitution. Some go even farther, advocating secession, states "nullfying" federal laws, and the formation of citizen militias. The tea parties in the Pacific Northwest, Barstow writes, have been shaped by influences such as libertarian Representative Ron Paul (R-TX) and by the sometimes-violent anti-government activism of northern Idaho (see Early 1970s, 1980-1982, 1983-1995, and February 15, 1995). The 1992 standoff at Ruby Ridge (see August 31, 1992), which occurred in nearby Idaho, is a touchstone for many tea partiers, just as it was for Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh (see August 21-31, 1992). Many, but not all, tea party members and groups embrace the "birther" conspiracy theory that Obama is not a natural American citizen. A favorite news blog, WorldNetDaily, routinely electrifies the movement by warning of new White House plans to build massive internment camps and stuff them with tea party members, or of plans to send waves of United Nations troops throughout the nation to confiscate Americans' guns. ResistNet regularly warns that Obama is trying to convert Interpol, the international police organization, into his own personal police force, and advises tea partiers to "grab their guns." Tea partiers like Mary Johnson of New Mexico points to the Bush-era wiretapping scandal as proof that the government can, and is, preparing to bring democracy to an end. As the groups' fear and contempt for the federal government grows, Barstow writes, they turn more frequently to "fringe" groups such as white supremacist, anti-government militias. In Indiana, a militia coalition called Defenders of Liberty is networking with tea party groups and other "Patriot" organizations throughout the state. Darin Stevens, the leader of the Spokane 9/12 project, told Barstow that before tuning in to Beck's show, he had paid almost no attention to politics. After the recession hit and his personal financial structure started to collapse, he began watching Beck. "I had no clue that my country was being taken from me," he explains. He began the Spokane chapter of Beck's 9/12 project, and was astounded that 110 people attended the first meeting. Stevens now belongs to the Oath Keepers as well as the 9/12 Project. Spokane tea partier Leah Southwell became a convert after stumbling on Paul's speeches on YouTube. Southwell turned from being a successful Mary Kay makeup sales representative to being a self-described member of "the uprising." Southwell, through Paul, is now fully supportive of the Patriot ideology, and holds as evident truth a number of conspiracy theories involving the Bilderberg Group, the Trilateral Commission, and the Council on Foreign Relations. "The more you know, the madder you are," she told Barstow. "I mean when you finally learn what the Federal Reserve is!" Southwell is now a local official with the John Birch Society. She says that the affiliation between organizations like the JBS and the tea parties will continue to grow: "Most of these people [tea partiers] are just waking up." Former car salesman Richard Mack, a longtime militia supporter who co-wrote Ruby Ridge survivor Randy Weaver's memoirs, is a favorite speaker at tea party events. "People just do not trust any of this," Mack told Barstow. "It's not just the fringe people anymore. These are just ordinary people—teachers, bankers, housewives."
Amorphous Structure - Local tea party groups often join, in one degree or another, one of several competing national tea party organizations such as ResistNet or the Tea Party Express, most of which are organized, staffed, and funded by conservative lobbying groups such as FreedomWorks (see February 16-17, 2009, February 19, 2009 and After, February 27, 2009, March 2, 2009, March 13, 2009 and After, April 14, 2009, and April 15, 2009) or Americans for Prosperity (see Late 2004, February 16-17, 2009, February 19, 2009 and After, and April 2009 and After). Some tea party groups have been joined by, or in some cases overrun by, other groups, from "birthers" to militias, supporters of Lyndon LaRouche, pro-gun groups, and the sovereign states movement. Many coalitions such as Friends of Liberty were formed in opposition to what leaders called the endless "hijack attempts" by state and county Republican Parties. Dann Selle of the Official Tea Party of Spokane told Barstow, "We had to stand our ground, I'll be blunt."
Support from Elected Politicians - Rick Perry, the governor of Texas and a possible 2012 Republican candidate for president, has joined with Texas tea parties in supporting the state's secession from the United States. Nevada Republican Joe Heck, who ran for Congress in 2008, attacked both parties for moving the nation towards "socialist tyranny" and solicited tea party support at a rally in Las Vegas. Indiana Republican Richard Behney, running for the US Senate, told tea party supporters that if the 2010 elections did not turn out to his liking: "I'm cleaning my guns and getting ready for the big show. And I'm serious about that, and I bet you are, too." (Barstow 2/15/2010)
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subset: commoncrawl


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EBC Weekly Status Memos
Embedded Linux Class by Mark A. Yoder
A Weekly Status Memo is due on Monday of each week. This memo is to document all that you have done during the previous week. Here are things I look for in a memo.
- Have To, From, Date, and Subject field on the top.
- Use a meaningful subject. Week 2, Exercises 02, 04 and 10 is meaningful. Exercise Memo is not.
- Have a section of each exercise that is completed.
- Start with a couple sentence introduction giving an overview of what the exercise is about.
- Answer all the questions in the exercise.
- Use tables.
- Clearly state which parts of the exercise you were able to complete.
- Note any parts of the exercise you were unable to complete and explain why.
- End with a few sentences of concluding remarks. What did you learn? What else would you like to learn? What do you suggest for other related exercises? What extra interesting things did you do?
Your grade for each exercise will be based on what you report in your memo. No need for the memo to be long. Just make it clear about what you have done.
Embedded Linux Class by Mark A. Yoder


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You know what they say: It's the thought that counts.
We wish we were crafty enough to make a gorgeous set of earrings or stunning necklace for our friends and family. If you want to purchase something special and unique for the holidays, but don't have the time (or talent!) to craft it yourself, Etsy is a great site to find beautiful, uncommon goods.
This Christmas, support your fellow Latinas and gift your friends and family one of these gorgeous, handmade accessories:
1. Etsy Gift Guide: Kei Jewelry
Kei Jewelry:
Keyla Torres of Kei Jewelry handrafts beautiful, unique, high-quality pieces out of San Juan, Puerto Rico. The amethyst druzy necklace (pictured at bottom) is the perfect gift for your sister, your mom, or...for yourself! The glam gemstone will add some sparkle to any holiday outfit.
$50, www.etsy.com
2. Etsy Gift Guide: Adriana Soto
Adriana Soto:
Adriana loves working with crystals and gems to create stunning, statement making pieces. This crystal necklace comes in a variety of finishes and lengths, and we think it's the perfect gift for your trendy best friend or fashionista little sister. Check out her site -- you won't be disappointed: Adriana handcrafts gorgeous drop-earrings, fashionable above-the-knuckle rings, and more.
$62, www.etsy.com
3. Etsy Gift Guide: Samsara Prints
Samsara Prints:
Jenny, of Samsara Prints, is based out of Puerto Rico. There, she makes amazing screen printed items -- including these fabulous, unconventional tote bags! We love the classic nautical anchor print for the office, and the Alice in Wonderland print is just quirky enough to spark a conversation at a bar or out with friends. Check out more incredibly prints at her Etsy shop!
$18, www.etsy.com
4. Etsy Gift Guide: Sol Del Sur
Sol Del Sur:
Soledad, the designer behind Sol Del Sur, aims to celebrate the richness of small details. She combines textile techniques and unconventional materials in fresh and novel ways. Additionally, Soledad tries to incorporate US made and environmentally conscious products and materials into her designs. Best of all: her stunning jewelry costs as little as $20! We would love to see this stunning pair of Southwest Brass Earrings waiting for us under the Christmas tree…
$65, www.etsy.com
5. Etsy Gift Guide: La Galeria
La Galeria:
Latina floral artist Peggy Martinez loves using her talent to benefit charities she believes in. The artist, who has been featured in the American Art Collector, is currently selling this print to benefit the Latina Women Scholarship Fund of Rochester. All proceeds from the sale of this particular image (called "Strong As Steel, Gentle As A Butterfly") will benefit the charity! You can buy the print, which is inspired by the life Frida Kahlo, in three different sizes. The 8x10 copy only costs $20!
$20 - $75, www.etsy.com
6. Etsy Gift Guide: 464 Handmade
464 Handmade:
Mexican lawyer, RoseMaría, loves to sew, quilt and handmake one-of-a-kind pieces in her downtime. Her adorable Etsy shop is filled with unique and lovely accessories. We're obsessed with these precious "You Are Loved" gift tags, and can't wait to attach them to all of our presents!
$5, www.etsy.com
7. Etsy Gift Guide: Margarita Ceramics
Margarita Ceramics:
Venezuelan transplant Elena Madureri works with ceramics, wood, photography, and paint to create stunning pieces of art. You can purchase everything from serving plates to coffee mugs from her shop, but we fell in love with this ceramic nativity scene.
$75, www.etsy.com
8. Etsy Gift Guide: Chromatica Group
Chromatica Group:
Need a gorgeous, unique Christmas gift that doubles as a housewarming present? Boricua Carene Pérez and her husband sell unique handmade lamps and lampshades. Trust us, your prima who just moved to the big city will absolutely love this New York inspired lampshade…
$90, www.etsy.com


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New accounting rules put city's net assets at risk
Bill King says current rules for governmental entities allow them to show only a fraction of the actual shortfall on their balance sheet.
When an employer sponsors a defined benefit pension, the employer is deferring some of the payment to the employee for the services the employee is rendering. The employer is in reality borrowing money from the employee, taking the employee's services today in exchange, in part, for a payment in the future.
When defined benefit plans were first developed, the accounting rules did not require that the employer recognize that it was, in essence, incurring a liability for these future promises of compensation. Over time, the accounting rules have been tightened to reflect the financial reality of the transaction. Also, employers and employees now almost universally set money aside each year to fund these future benefits.
The problem, however, is that it is difficult to know how much money to set aside today for a benefit that will not be paid for several decades. Over the years, actuaries have developed mathematical models for estimating whether the money that has been set aside will be sufficient to pay the benefits that have been earned.
If these actuarial estimates show that the amount is insufficient, the plan is said to have an unfunded liability, that is, the employer owes the employees more than it has set aside.
For many years, private companies have been required to show these estimated liabilities on their financial statements. However, the accounting rules for governmental entities have been much less rigorous. As a result, governmental entities normally show only a fraction of the actual shortfall on their balance sheet.
For example, the city of Houston's last financial statement only showed about $2.5 billion in pension and retiree health care debts. But according to the actuarial studies the real debt is more than $5 billion.
However, that is about to dramatically change. The Government Accounting Standard Board (GASB), the group charged with promulgating accounting rules for governmental entities, issued two new rules late last year designed to bring the financial statements more in line with reality.
First, the GASB is going to require that the assets in the trust be valued at market. You may wonder why such a rule would be necessary, but retirement plans generally "smooth" the investment gains and losses over a five-year period. Almost all plans today are using this rule to defer loses incurred in recent years.
The second change mandated by the GASB relates to the assumed investment rate. Actuaries "discount" the amount an employer owes at a rate equal to what the plan expects to earn on the assets in its trust. The higher the assumed rate, the lower the estimated liability will be. All three of the Houston plans assume a rate of 8.5 percent.
This is the highest rate used by any plan in the country and is only used by a handful of plans. The new rule forces entities to use a more realistic discounting formula.
The effect of these rule changes is not trivial. Craig Mason, the city's chief pension officer, has estimated that the rule changes could add more than $2 billion to what the city now shows on its balance sheet for pension debt. And he is probably being conservative.
Considering that the city's net assets are now down to just over $3 billion and steadily going downhill, a $2 billion hit would put technical insolvency, (i.e., liabilities exceed assets) just around the corner.
It is important to note that the true underlying financial condition of the city will not change just because the GASB changes the accounting rules. The truth is that the city is probably already technically insolvent. GASB is just going to force us all to acknowledge that the emperor has no clothes.
Link to Mason's presentation to Houston City Council: http://www.houstontx.gov/council/1/bfacommittee/20121211/pension_presentation.pdf
Email King at email@example.com and follow him on twitter.com


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Updated 7/18 – Notice of Electrical Testing July 21
Posted in: CHCP Updates, Construction News
As we approach full operation of our new electrical generation plant, there are a series of tests we must perform leading up to commercial operation.
The most significant is the electrical interlock testing that we have scheduled for Sunday, July 21. This phase of the testing will involve the complete loss of electrical power on campus at least two times during the test, and for up to two hours each time. Buildings that have emergency diesel power will be transferred to that source. Buildings that do not have any emergency power will be without power for up to two hours, at least two times during the day.
The first outage will begin between 7:00 and 8:00 a.m. on July 21. The second outage will follow the testing procedure but will likely occur mid-day. The performance of these tests is critical to the successful commissioning of the new Montclair District Energy System and power plant.
Please take appropriate action to secure computers and other electronic equipment, if necessary, in advance of the power outages.
**Please note: Because of the power outages, the Red Hawk Diner will be closed on Sunday, July 21.**
We apologize for the inconvenience.


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Graduates of the Bethel Deaconess Hospital School of Nursing program, which operated in Newton from 1908-74, and the Bethel College nursing program, which first began admitting students in 1980, are members of the Bethel Deaconess Hospital/Bethel College Nursing Alumni Association (BDH/BCNAA).
BDH/BCNAA provides welcome gifts for junior nursing students and a farewell luncheon for seniors. The group holds an annual meeting over Fall Festival weekend and gives an Outstanding Nursing Alumnus award each year. Nursing alumni are invited to nominate graduates for the award by contacting the nursing department. View a list of past recipients.
Review the constitution and bylaws of the Bethel Deaconess Hospital/Bethel College Nurses Alumni Association.
Read the minutes from the annual Bethel Deaconess Hospital/Bethel College Nurses Alumni Association meeting.
Read about the history of the BDH/BC nursing program, including Marcy Thiesen's speech,
Without the past there can be no future.
Get involved
- Update your e-mail or mailing address and share current news with us
- Nominate a BDH/BCNAA graduate for a nursing alumnus award
- Volunteer to be an officer
- Volunteer to help with BDH/BCNAA events
BDH/BCNAA Board
- Geri Tyrell, president
- Ruth Tumblin, vice president
- Connie Claassen, treasurer
- Michelle Osbourne, secretary


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4830 Series / SN4838/4JS4JOC/EUI Patton Inalp SmartNode
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The SmartNode? 4830 Series IADs let you add packet voice while providing access routing with native V.35/X.21 synchronous serial connection. Add up to 8 phone lines and combine Internet and VPN access on a single PPP or Frame-Relay based access line for the new standard in toll-bypass, remote/branch office connectivity, and enhanced carrier services.
The SN4830 Series offers models with combinations of 2 to 8 analog FXS phone ports and 2 or 4 FXO ports. The Dual 10/100baseT LAN ports can be used for LAN, IPSec VPN and DMZ connections. The integrated X.21/V.35 WAN port provides direct access to IP over PPP and Frame-Relay. Like every SmartNode the 4830 series supports the industry standard VoIP signaling protocols SIP, H.323, T.38 Fax-Relay, plus Fax and Modem-Bypass and is interoperable with leading Softswitches and VoIP services.
Quality of Service (QoS) features include advanced voice prioritization and traffic management. DownStreamQoS? ensures voice without interruptions even over best-effort internet connections. Packet labeling according to 802.1p, TOS and DiffServ enable integration into managed QoS networks.
The SN4830 is the solution for service providers and network integrators looking for the seamless integration of analog phones and PBXs into converged VoIP-Data networks. It ensures easy setup and continuous trouble-free operation and cost effective deployment. The support of the leading VoIP signaling protocols ensures interoperability with third-party equipment and protects your investments for the future.


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Social Media Marketing
If you may not be fully aware of just what social marketing involves and you would not be alone in that thinking. Social marketing is the subtle use of such social networking sites as Facebook and Twitter to help promote a company, and idea or a brand. Since the first social networking sites sprung up, they have become more and more popular, especially with the younger demographic, and this is something that has not gone unnoticed by those people in the advertising industry. It is not just the big corporations, who have millions to spend on advertising, who can make the most out of social networking sites, if you have a product or service to sell then you too can use these sites to promote yourself or your business.


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What is stress?
Stress occurs when some situation, irritation or force confronts you and you have to adjust. It can result from physical factors such as illness, poor diet, or hunger; environmental factors such as noise, temperature, or pollution; psychological factors such as threats to self-esteem, loneliness, or negative thinking patterns; or situational factors such as changing roles, changing plans, or the threat of bodily harm.
Stress can result from positive events as well as negative ones. For example, getting married, receiving a promotion, having a baby, or winning the lottery can cause stress. Stress can be caused by major events as well as minor events or daily hassles and irritations. Any change has the potential for causing stress when it forces you to adjust in some way. Stress is an unavoidable fact of life. Having some stress is actually beneficial because it gives us the push we need to achieve goals.
Most importantly, each person's experience of stress is highly individual. How one experiences stress is often influenced by perception, attitudes, goals and temperament. For example, some people find living in the city stressful while others find living in the country stressful. Having quiet time alone may relax one person but make another person feel anxious.
What happens when I am under stress?
Whether you are confronting a tiger or sitting in a traffic jam, stress causes your body to respond in a particular way. For example, your heart may beat faster, the pupils of your eyes dilate, your muscles get tense, and the palms of your hands may get sweaty.Your body undergoes a series of chemical changes known as the "fight or flight" response and you are geared up to fight or flee. Most of the stressful situations in modern life do not allow us opportunities to fight or run away. When too much stress builds up, we experience physical, emotional and behavioral symptoms. If stress becomes chronic, we may eventually develop an illness or disease. It is estimated that as many as 90% of visits to the doctor are related to symptoms or diseases linked to stress.
What are the symptoms of stress?
Stress can produce a variety of physical, emotional and behavioral symptoms. Please note that a number of other conditions can also produce many of these symptoms. You should contact your doctor if any of these symptoms are severe or persistant.
Physical symptoms of stress may include:
- Muscle tension
- Muscle pain
- Dry mouth
- Headaches
- Hyperventilation
- Heartburn or indigestion
- Diarrhea
- Vomiting
- Heart palpitations
- Loss of appetite or increased appetite
- Weight loss or weight gain
- Fatigue
- Insomnia
- Frequent illness
- Rapid pulse
- Loss of interest in sex
- Irregular menstrual cycles
Emotional symptoms of stress may include:
- Crying
- Impatience
- Irritability
- Hostility and combativeness
- Worrying
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Suspiciousness
- Feeling numb, cold or uncaring
- Confusion
- Low self-esteem
Behavioral symptoms of stress may include:
- Inability to concentrate
- Tardiness
- Absenteeism
- Indecisiveness
- Focusing on insignificant minutia
- Fighting
- Rushing
- Nail biting
- Overeating
- Alcohol, drug use and smoking
- Lack of motivation
- Poor judgment
- Clumsiness
- Low productivity
- Tapping feet or fingers
- Withdrawal
How is stress treated?
Your health care provider can treat certain symptoms. He or she may refer you to a counselor who can provide you with methods for reducing and coping with stress. Counseling can help you identify which sources of stress you can avoid, which you can change, and which require adjustment. Relaxation techniques, deep breathing, stretching your muscles, improving your diet and exercising can help relieve stress.
Other coping strategies include:
- Losing weight, if you are overweight
- Giving up smoking, illicit drugs or excessive alcohol use
- Eating three or more small, nutritious, low-fat, high-fiber meals each day
- Making time for relationships with family and friends
- Making time for yourself
- Simplifying your life
- Developing hobbies or taking part in sports or social activities
- Getting adequate sleep (sleep needs vary among people, but most need a minimum of 7 hours per night)
- Sharing your responsibilities and getting support
- Resolving conflicts
- Breaking goals into small steps rather than focusing on the entire project
- Talking about your problems and feelings to a trusted confidante or therapist


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Lighting can make or break an indoor or outdoor space. Here at Utility we recognise the importace of well designed, functional lighting so we offer only the very best of modern, contemporary lighting solutions from leading designer brands. Whether you are looking for modern pendant lights for the kitchen / dining room, a statement floor lamp for the living room or bedroom or simply just a functional table lamp or desk lamp for your office or workspace, we have the right light for you.
Our collection includes modern lighting from world-renowned brands including Artemide, Anglepoise, Flos, Foscarini, Lightyears & Moooi. Change the perceptions of mood, style and scale through the use of contemporary lighting and choose from our extensive range of pendant lamps and wall lights in various styles - from the conventional to the contemporary. Discover the full range of modern designer lighting solutions when you shop online at Utility today.View More View Less
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I have rarely experienced such excellent quality advice, support and reliability. Your staff communicate effectively and helpfully. I am a truly satisfied customer. I love my String Shelving and I will not hesitate to return to Utility for my next purchase. Thank you!
Your customer service has been fantastic. I'm seriously impressed. Really pleased to be able to place the bigger order and make your time worthwhile. I think I need to send you a medal!
I just wanted to express my thanks again for your great customer service. I ordered my items less than 24 hours ago and I've amended my order- yet I still have my order here with me now. You went out of your way to deliver my order and I'm very grateful. I wish more places had people like you :-)
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Thanks again for such amazing customer service - I have honestly been so impressed by everything! Thank you for doing such a wonderful job
Excellent customer service and immediate response to enquiry (live chat). Very happy every time used Utility both online and on high street.
I couldn't be happier with the custom made sofa bought through the online store. It is perfect and made all the more enjoyable by buying it through the guys at utility. Ben and Paul who delivered the sofa were amazing, kind and really helpful in a difficult situation (of course the lift broke when I was getting something delivered). Would highly recommend!
Just wanted to message and say that I'm a big fan of the Utility Stores and the types of products you guys sell. I work close by to the Manchester store at University Green, so I'm popping in a fair bit generally for cards, gifts, etc. I just nipped in again this afternoon about one product I'd bought earlier and the staff were super helpful and attentive. It made it really easy, and I was in and out in no time.
Just wanted to drop you guys a quick note to say how happy I am with the service I have had. Especially the two guys who delivered/carried into an awkward space/built/then took away the packaging, not to mention then gave me a lift into town. Thank you. Plus the sofa looks amazing. I will definitely be using you guys more in the future and will highly recommend you to anyone who will listen.
Thank you for all your help and customer service, the Eames Lounge Chair arrived yesterday and I love it.
Comment: I just wanted to say that Esther on the checkout in the L1 store made my day today she was so friendly
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House Passes Bill to Cut Food-Stamp Spending
Measure Would Cut Nearly $40 Billion Over a Decade, Sets Up Battle With Senate
WASHINGTON—The House on Thursday narrowly passed a bill curtailing spending on food stamps, setting up a battle with the Senate, which backs far smaller cuts. The vote was 217-210.
The bill would cut nearly $40 billion over a decade, or about 5% in expected spending, from Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programs.
The Senate has called for...
To Read the Full Story


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Press Releases
The latest Dannon news
Visit our library, select a year or brand and
download the latest press releases.
Global Partnership Announced between Shakira and Activia® for Its New 'Dare to Feel Good' Campaign
March 12, 2014 – Today the leading-selling brand of yogurt worldwide*, Activia, is announcing an exciting global partnership spanning more than 50 countries with international icon Shakira. The Colombian-born superstar supports the yogurt brand's new 'Dare to Feel Good' campaign. The new campaign brings to life Activia's 'Feeling Good Starts from the Inside' tagline with a new dance-themed ad.
Since its introduction, first in Europe in 1987, in the USA in 2006, and now in more than 50 countries worldwide, Activia has been at the forefront of the digestive health conversation and the new platform brings a new level of global visibility for the brand.
"This new campaign demonstrates the connection between how you feel when your digestive system is working well and your overall well-being," said Jeffrey Rothman, VP of marketing, The Dannon Company. "Like no one else in the world, Shakira's performance illustrates how feeling good on the inside can help you feel wonderful overall."
Filmed in Barcelona, the new ad, which begins airing globally on Sunday, March 16, features Shakira in a fantasy forest where she is showered with swirls of gold stardust and dances to express how good she feels inside. "I believe that feeling good on the inside is the key to personal well-being, and dance is one way to communicate that synergy of feeling good inside and overall well-being. Part of why I collaborated with Activia to make the new TV commercial is because I truly believe that taking care of yourself from the inside helps you unlock and express your well-being on the outside," said Shakira.
Earlier in 2014 in the USA, the brand kicked off the "Activia Tummies. Happy People." campaign to encourage Americans to experience the many benefits of feeling good from the inside. This initiative is in partnership with leading multi-media entertainment artist Reba McEntire, the respected health expert Travis Stork, and world-class athlete Laila Ali, and is helping spread the message to a broad audience nationwide. The trio will continue to disseminate the brand's message throughout the year in the USA.
Shakira's new song "Dare (La La La)" will be included on her new album, "Shakira," which launches on March 25th, and provides the soundtrack for the new global commercial. Developed by Vinizius Young & Rubicam Barcelona, the advertisement forms the central piece within Activia's first ever integrated global communication campaign. Directed by the acclaimed photographer and director, Jaume de Laiguana, the commercial's renowned production team also included Oscar winning art director Eugenio Caballero and award winning Javier Aguirresarobe.
The campaign includes the launch of a new global website, www.activia.com on March 16 that will house exclusive campaign content including behind-the-scenes footage from the ad shoot. A preview of the behind-the-scenes video is available beginning March 12 on Activia's global YouTube channel. The new commercial will be available on www.activia.us.com beginning March 16.
Activia is a probiotic yogurt that helps regulate the digestive system when consumed daily for two weeks as part of a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle.
About SHAKIRA
Over the course of her career, Colombian singer-songwriter and Grammy winner Shakira has sold over 60 million records worldwide and has won numerous awards including two Grammys, eight Latin Grammys, four World Music Awards, three American Music Awards and five Billboard Music Awards, to name a few. She is the only artist from South America to have a number one song in the US, and has had four of the 20 top-selling hits of the last decade. At the age of 18, she founded the Pies Descalzos (Barefoot) Foundation which currently provides education and nutrition to over six thousand impoverished children in Colombia and is expanding its work to other countries, including newly launched projects in Haiti and South Africa. In October 2011, Shakira was named a member of President Obama's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanics. Shakira served as coach on the 4th season of "The Voice," NBC's hit reality vocal competition series that searches for the nation's best voice. She returned to the show on season 6. Shakira's new album releases on March 25th 2014.
About The Dannon Company
Headquartered in White Plains, New York, Dannon has plants in Minster, OH, Fort Worth, TX, West Jordan, UT, and Portland, OR. Dannon makes more than 200 different flavors, styles and sizes of cultured refrigerated and frozen dairy products to serve its retail and foodservice customers. In its pursuit to bring health through food to as many people as possible, Dannon is committed to Americans enjoying yogurt every day as one of the three recommended daily servings of dairy.
Dannon is a subsidiary of Danone, and Dannon is the top-selling brand of yogurt worldwide, sold under the names Dannon and Danone. Danone holds top positions globally in healthy food through four businesses: it ranks number one worldwide in fresh dairy products, number two in bottled water and baby nutrition, and is Europe's number one medical nutrition company. Listed on Euronext Paris, Danone is a component stock of leading social responsibility indexes including the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes DJSI Stoxx and DJSI World, ASPI Eurozone and the Ethibel Sustainability Index.
*Source: Nielsen


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DoD Battles IT BureaucracyBy Elizabeth Wasserman
DoD Battles IT Bureaucracy
Focus On | e-Government
Business Goal | To become more responsive at less cost
Technology Issue | Hundreds of old, duplicative and incompatible legacy systems that work poorly, if at all
Management Challenge | Entrenched bureaucracy, changing budgets, political infighting, cultural resistance and revolving leadership
Results So Far | Mixed, or pending
The Pentagon's surface scarsits charred outer perimeter, its damaged roof, the gaping hole left by American Airlines Flight 77 when it slammed into the building on Sept. 11 at an estimated 400 mphare no longer visible, though cranes are still positioned on the western front of this five-sided icon of American military might.
In the past year, rebuilding the Pentagon has become a symbol of the administration's resolve to win a new kind of war, with 21st-century weapons systems that rely more heavily on information technology than did the tanks and dumb bombs of the Cold War. A key part of the strategy is a battle being waged within the walls of the Pentagon, to topple organizational barriers that have long stood in the way of meaningful change: old technologies, incompatible systems and a Defense Department bureaucracy so entrenched that it can, at times, keep the Air Force from communicating with the Navy and the Army from sharing data with the Marines.
Ironically, it was on the afternoon of Sept. 10, 2001, less than 24 hours before the first planes hit the World Trade Center, that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld first declared his war on the Pentagon's bureaucracy. At the time, Rumsfeld's initiative was viewed internally as yet another in a long line of peacetime initiatives waged over the years to cut costs, reduce staff and dole out lucrative technology contracts to favored firms in the defense establishment. "In this building," Rumsfeld told several hundred stone-faced Defense Department bureaucrats seated in the agency's auditorium, "despite this era of scarce resources taxed by mounting threats, money disappears into duplicative duties and bloated bureaucracynot because of greed, but of gridlock." Some 673 different and uncoordinated financial systems inside the DoD, for example, had been making it impossible to track $2.3 trillion in financial transactions. "Innovation is stifled," Rumsfeld continued, "not by ill intent, but by institutional inertia." A new idea from an officer, he said, had to climb 17 levels of bureaucracy to get to the Defense Secretary's desk.
Then Rumsfeld, a former CEO of drugmaker G.D. Searle & Co. and of DoD contractor General Instrument Corp., said the agency's computer systems had become so complex and incompatible that information could not be shared from one floor of the Pentagon to the next, except in paper form. "The technology revolution has transformed organizations across the private sector," Rumsfeld told the group, "but not ours, not fully, not yet. We are, as they say, tangled in our anchor chain."
The mission now, says Rumsfeld: Use information technology not only to build smarter weaponry, but also to modernize and streamline front- and back-office operations to speed the response times of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines to new types of enemy threats. In the parlance of the military establishment, the Pentagon's new technology-heavy approach to war in the postSept. 11 world is known as C4IST, which stands for Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Intelligence Systems Technologythe heart of so-called "network-centric" warfare. The idea is to have real-time information about where everything is and where it's all going, even to know how much the enemy knows, thus permitting more efficient and innovative defense operations in wartime and in peace.
Funding is squarely behind it: All told, this seemingly monolithic agency spends nearly a billion tax dollars every day; its budget before Sept. 11, at $328 billion, was the largest among government agencies. It continues to be the largest, with $379 billion being sought for 2003. Further ahead, the budget is proposed to rise to $470 billion. Says Jay Farrar, a former Marine who is vice president for the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank: "At the Pentagon, a lot of technology has been bought to upgrade weapons, but traditionally, not enough energy, attention and money has been put toward upgrading and streamlining the level of back-office technology. At the end of the day, the thinking had been: 'Do you put money out on the battlefield where you save lives, or do you put it in the office building to streamline a process?'"
Now, DoD is starting to do both. Even skeptical government watchdogs have taken note that Rumsfeld set aside $100 million in this year's DoD budget for financial modernization and a study aimed at reforming the Pentagon's IT architecture. At press time, President George W. Bush was proposing a 17 percent increase, or $53 billion, in federal IT spending. If approved in late September, the Department of Defense will get half, or $26.4 billion (see "
Meanwhile, the Pentagon's CIO, John Stenbit, a 30-year technology veteran and former defense systems expert at defense contractor TRW Corp., has put on hold troubled IT programs and has instituted strict new management controls, at one point requiring a progress review of the Navy Marine Corps Intranet before giving the project more funding. Further, new committees, councils and boards have been created to control spending and modernize business practices. Previously, there were few, if any, such agencywide checks and balancesor attempts at cross-agency business cooperation. "Power today," President Bush said months after the attacks, "is defined not by size anymore, but by mobility and swiftness." In that vein, the push to start transforming the DoD's creaky information backbone into a real-time tracking, coordination and support tool for a new-age military establishment and its operations"is part of an entirely new approach to how the DoD now thinks about the rules of war," says Stenbit.
Technology Minefield
Technology Minefield
The challenge is formidable, and it's not certain whether Stenbit can pull it off: This is by no means the first attempt to torpedo the Pentagon's entrenched back-office operations. In the late 1980s, a modernization plan, called the Corporate Information Management Initiative, was supposed to replace 2,000 duplicative systems and save billions by streamlining operations. Instead, it wound up costing $20 billion and produced few results, according to David Walker, the comptroller general of the General Accounting Office, the watchdog arm of Congress.
The danger, of coursewhether in e-government or private industryis that by adding new technology, managers also run the risk of creating whole new layers of red tape. Further, trying to forge quick and fundamental change in a bureaucracy built by trillions of dollars over decades on millions of lines of outdated or misunderstood computer code is analogous to trying to make a U-turn in an aircraft carrier.
As in the private sector, politics, legions of rules and regulations and the need for multiple levels of project reviewa tangle of red tape reflected in the scandals in the 1980s over $640 toilet seat covers and $400 hammershave often doomed even the best of intentions, and have delayed and lengthened projects of any kind to the point of cost overruns and obsolescence. Legacy systems abound. The Defense Logistics Agency, the arm of the DoD that supplies military forces with food, clothing, fuel and $15 billion in annual supplies, has COBOL systems so old that components are no longer supported by the computer maker.
Further, cultural roadblocks can be daunting. The average 1.7-year tenure of the department's top political appointees hinders long-term planning and management accountability. IT operations have tended to be developed piecemeal, with a lack of agencywide performance measures and incentives for change, thanks to turf wars between the service branches.
Consider the Pentagon's Standard Procurement System, a $3.7 billion digital purchasing project that was supposed to replace 76 different legacy systems and automate the process by which the DoD's various branches and departments buy everything from weapons to shaving cream. When American Management Systems Inc. won the contract in 1997, the system was scheduled to be up and running by March 2000. But by September 2001, only about half of DoD's 43,000 users were online. Stenbit froze the project this summer. "People were installing technology without regard to deadlines and budgets," says Randy Hite, who heads up technology reviews for the GAO. "Government invests in technology to provide business value but this wasn't happening." The GAO, in a report, added: "DoD's management of SPS is a lesson in how not to justify, make and monitor the implementation of information technology investment decisions."
To be sure, the Pentagon has a longstanding credibility problem when it comes to talk of reform. But even the agency's staunchest critics say Sept. 11 has, in some ways, put the agency onto a new course. "I think [DoD] learned something after Sept. 11. They have the momentum now. The stars are aligned, and change is much more likely to happen now than it would have been a year ago," says Lawrence Korb, a former assistant defense secretary during the Reagan administration and now a defense strategy analyst with the Council on Foreign Relations, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank. Still, Korb adds, change won't come quickly. He estimates the technology transformation could take at least a decade to complete.
Priming the Pipeline
Priming the Pipeline
CIO Stenbit's strategy is both huge and simple: Deploy an IT modernization plan for the Pentagon that reflects the struggles many companies in private industry facethe need to centralize financial controls and communications while keeping some decision-making decentralized. For starters, Stenbit wants to maximize the benefits of existing IT projects, minimize project delays and speed up IT acquisitions. He's created a Rapid Improvement Team to oversee a dozen pilot projects aimed at finding ways to cut, from years down to 18 months, the time it takes to get technology approved and put into the hands of the soldiers, sailors, airmen and technology workers who need it. Says Air Force CIO John Gilligan: "In wartime, we can cut through the bureaucracy without sacrificing quality and still provide rigorous oversight. But if something's not quite on that wartime priority list, it can take years to process the requirement, get the funding, do the contracting action and get a system installed."
Gilligan says the panel has already been making changes, such as giving the branches more autonomy to make decisions, streamlining the review processes, and posting periodic reviews of IT purchases and installations of intranets, instead of printing out scores of paper copies for individuals with oversight responsibility to circulate for weeks, if not months or years, at a time.
Also since Sept. 11, at the behest of Stenbit, each of the DoD's three armed service departmentsthe Army, the Air Force, and the Navy-Marine Corpshave been working to overhaul their IT systems, in some cases for the first time in more than a decade. Changes have been as simple as giving recruits an e-mail address before they get their first buzz cut, and as complex as making plans to digitize supply, weapons procurement and order systems. The Pentagon is also creating mammoth intranets, serving more personnel1.4 million active duty men and women in uniform, another million in the National Guard and Reserves, and some 659,000 civilian employeesthan any private enterprise in the U.S.
And to better manage supply chains, there are at least seven different enterprise resource planning systems being deployed to update technology that, in some cases, dates to the 1950s and, in at least one case, is based on 80-column punch cards. "Because of the pace of technology," Stenbit says, "I'm not a big believer in centralized planning of IT. I am much more of an impressionistic, van Goghlike person believing that we need to let technology lead us, continually, into areas unique to the targets at hand."
Case in point: The Navy has four pilot projects under way. The Naval Sea Systems Command has awarded a $36 million contract to IBM Corp. to set up a regional maintenance system as part of a $347 pilot program. The Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command went live with its SAP system to track business operations last July under a $58 million program that will replace 35 legacy systems. The Naval Air Systems Command had a one-year, $9 million pilot with KPMG Consulting Inc. to manage its E-2C Hawkeye program, part of a $192 million ERP pilot program. The Army awarded a 10-year, $680 million contract to Computer Sciences Corp. to convert two legacy systems in the supply chain to ERP systems.
But Stenbit's approach hasn't come without criticism. Last November, the DoD's Inspector General criticized the plethora of ERP programs under development and raised concerns that the military services are developing at least $2 billion worth of financial management systems in a hodgepodge fashion before they know for certain that these systems will be compatible with the DoD's other standard finance systems. Stenbit's solution, for now: Regularly convene the various ERP program managers to make sure their systems can talk with each other. Meanwhile, efforts to gun down cultural silos are also under way. Says the GAO's Hite: "Without a department-wide plan, people try to do things to control just their little part of the world. [The DoD] needs to put in place a blueprint for the department as a whole."
Another big-ticket item on Stenbit's fix-it list is purchasing. Before the DoD can transform the armed forces, he says, it will have to change the way it buys weapons and supplies. The current system was developed to cope with the relative certainties of the Cold War, but it isn't flexible enough to meet the fast-changing demands of the more volatile new war on terrorism. Now, for example, when the supply officer aboard a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier at sea needs to order new parts for a plane, he or she must contact the mother ship in the fleet, which then communicates back to its shore-based command, which in turn must notify the Navy Supply Systems Command, the $6 billion-a-year organization that moves supplies and spare parts to keep the Navy's ships stocked. Each of these steps involves different, disparate technology systemssome involving COBOL systems.
To combat this, NAVSUP is testing a state-of-the-art SAP system that may one day manage all Navy supplies of ammunition, food and parts worldwide. Navy Commander Tom Gerstner, director of change management and training for NAVSUP, estimates there could be up to $4.5 billion in purchasing savings by 2007, simply by getting rid of some mainframes, reducing the time needed to reconcile disparate databases and cutting the cost of inventory.
Speed gains are also expected. During a recent test, Navy officials followed a spare part through the current system, tracking it through 35 separate physical moves and 29 different systems of paper logbooks before it was delivered. "In the new environment, we will have one computer system, and instead of taking 30 days to deliver a part, it should only take 15," Gerstner says.
By far, the DoD's biggest ERP project to reform purchasing is in the Defense Logistics Agency, the arm of the DoD that supplies everything from jeep tires to uniforms to helicopter spare parts. With more than $15 billion in sales annually, the DLA would rank around 125 on the Fortune 500between Sun Microsystems Inc. and The Coca-Cola Co. David Falvey, the DLA's program executive officer, says DoD officials looked at a host of private companies, from Hewlett-Packard Co. to Dell Computer Corp. to Florida Power & Light, before deciding that ERP would be the cornerstone of an estimated $750 million business systems modernization program through 2005. "We need to have more material shipped directly from the supplier to the troops, to cut out the middle step and all the costs related to holding that inventory," Falvey said of the program, which went online in July.
Stenbit is also a big advocate of outsourcingin sharp contrast to military tradition, where proprietary code and systems unique to the DoD were developed, partly for security reasons. Stenbit hopes one day to replace much of this with commercially developed systems and software. Not only would that save money, Stenbit says, but it would let the DoD keep better pace with new technologies. "The idea of the military industrial complex that Eisenhower talked about was government telling defense companies what to make," says Stephen Gale, director of the Organizational Dynamics program at the University of Pennsylvania. Now, says Gale, new technology available on the open marketsfrom smartcard technology to intranetsdrive what the Pentagon does.
Small Victories
Small Victories
"In federal government today, we have at least 6,600 systems, because we have 6,600 forms that have to be put online. Somebody else told me it's really 26,000. So we may have 6,600 forms and 26,000 computer systems. That's a lot. We've only got 32 lines of business. How do you go from that to tens of thousands of systems, 33 million-plus Web pages and 23,000-plus Web sites? We've got a redundancy problem. There's just no doubt about it."
Mark Forman, White House director, IT and e-government; and director, federal CIO Council
Are any of Stenbit's efforts bearing fruit? Just ask Maj. Alan Dye, stationed some 1,500 miles from Washington, D.C., at Fort Hood, a U.S. Army base in central Texas. It used to take Dye weeks, if not months, to apply for a promotion: He'd have to write a letter to the Army personnel office, request a copy of his records, then wait days or weeks to review his data on microfiche file and reader. This time around, though, all Dye had to do was to log onto his PC, download his file from the Army's new $31.9 million intranet portal, Army Knowledge Online, and print it out. The whole process took seconds. The portal, a key component of the Army Knowledge Management project, is available to 1.2 million active and retired service personnel. It offers Web-based e-mail, news, banking information and some 8,000 links to classified and unclassified data, depending on one's log-in code. And the payoffs in savings so far have been enormous. The Army Personnel Command, for example, has been able to cut the number of network servers from more than 4,000 to just 43, saving the Army $28 million, says Cathy Michaliga, AKM director.
And that's not all. Now, servicemen and women are told via the Web when they need a dental checkup to qualify for deployment. Fast access to the health status of soldiers is a must for commanders in the event of a defense crisis: Each soldier must first have a clean bill of health. During the Gulf War, it could take up to a week for a commander to clear each recruit; AKO crunches that time to no more than one hour.
The Air Force is also developing its own intranet, consolidating hundreds of disparate legacy systems at 110 basesfrom San Antonio to Okinawainto one master Web access point. That enables pilots to, say, update the repair status of their jet fighters, check the latest weather forecasts and find directions to the local base commissary. The Navy and the Marines, meanwhile, are building an intranet to replace 200 different shore-based networks by 2008. Under a unique outsourcing contract for $6.9 billion awarded in October, the Navy Marine Corps Intranet will be owned and operated by Electronic Data Systems Corp. and will be leased back by the Navy in a way that requires it to pay for intranet service just as it does electricity.
The NMCI project, Stenbit says, is being closely watched by other government agencies as a potential model for government outsourcing. Says Navy Deputy CIO David Wennergren: "What I want to buy is performance rather than infrastructure." Even the GAO's Hite applauds the project's potential. "It's like a Sears Roebuck catalog," he says. "You order the service you need and pay as you go."
Down the road in Stenbit's push for what he calls a more "network-centric" organization is a plannot unlike those in business everywhereto get the Pentagon's back-office technologies to inform front-office strategiesin this case, the commanders and the generals. One of those projects involves using satellite communications to coordinate airborne intelligence and reconnaissance with troops on the ground or at sea. The system, according to Brig. Gen. Stephen Ferrell, the DoD's Space Architect, would use space lasers to zap information between commanders-in-chief and the different military services.
Wiring that up not only helps execute military strategy, it also helps keep track of who is where. Stenbit's Defense Integrated Military Human Resources System would replace 88 different personnel and payroll systems and consolidate the tracking of military personnel from basic training to retirement under one system. In Afghanistan, for example, each time troops were deployed, the joint task force commander had trouble keeping the troop records straight. Under each commander were a mix of people from the Marine Corps, Army, Navy and Air Force. But each of those branches had a different personnel system and needed different IT personnel to coordinate records for payroll and in case of injury. Other agencywide projects include computer systems that secure classified communications, book travel and provide reimbursement.
Can it all work? It's a lot to keep track of, and ITwhether in the Pentagon or throughout governmentsuffers a credibility problem on Capitol Hill: Some estimate the number of redundant computer systems in operation by the federal government, as a whole, at 6,600; others estimate closer to 26,000, according to Mark Forman, the Bush Administration's IT czar. There's also a stormy history of federal IT projects gone awry. The "poster child" of wasted IT effort: the Internal Revenue Service's Tax Systems Modernization program, which cost more than $3 billion before being killed in 1997.
But one thing has become clear in the past 12 months, at least at the Pentagon: Fixing IT systems isn't just a low-priority peacetime mantra left over from the closing days of the Cold War, when the enemy was more predictable and low-tech, and the battleground, geographically isolated. Now the threat is digital as well as land-based, triggering the need for fundamental change.
In a speech to students at National Defense University in January, Rumsfeld told students worried about another terrorist attack on American soil that all the high-tech weapons in the world won't transform the armed services "unless we also transform the way we think, the way we train, the way we exercise and the way we fight." And, he might have added, the way the Pentagon does business.
Elizabeth Wasserman is a Washington, D.C.-based writer. Formerly, she was Washington Bureau Chief for The Industry Standard.


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Last night, I added a little tiny bit of flair to my helmet-mounted mirror. The idea was shamelessly borrowed from the KC Bike Commuters mailing list/group, who in turn may have borrowed it from elsewhere. I was tired of presenting the world with a little gray rectangle in front of my face whenever I wear my helmet. I figured I needed to put something clever on there in a hurry.
The ride in was solo this morning. Supposedly Karen was riding. Chris is feeling crappy this week and is doing the wise thing: not making it worse by riding the bike.
This was my first commute on the road bike since last Thursday and I'm really thankful to be back on it. It's so much smoother and efficient than my mountain bike.
I saw some interesting things on the way in:
- A southbound bike commuter I haven't seen before, near 18th street expressway at SW Blvd.
- A cyclist about a mile ahead of me. I noticed him/her after I went under I-35 and never caught up nor lost ground. I don't think it's anyone I know.
- A car passed me with a MO license plate that ended in "LOL"
- A pair of Huskies peeking their heads out under a barely-open garage door near Mildred's Coffeehouse at 18th and Wyandotte or so. One was laying on its side and yawned at me as I rode by while the other one just looked at me like it wanted me to stop and play.
Random Tunage:
Bakke & Ljungqvist - Fanatic
Crash Test Dummies - Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm


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PHOTOS: Bum Tree comes down amid chants of 'shame!'
It was a day of high emotion as work on removing the iconic ''bum tree'' on Gerroa Road finally began on Thursday.
There were protests, tears, anger, chanting and cheers of support for the protesters and loud honking of horns from passing motorists, as well as words of admonishment at demonstrators and anger directed at contractors undertaking the work.
Between 30 and 40 protesters lined the edge of Gerroa Road, while others surrounded the base of the bum tree to try to stop its impending removal.
Two teenagers, Meg O'Connor from Shoalhaven Heads and Tarni Cunningham of Gerroa, arrived at the site about 6am and tied themselves to the base of the tree with rope.
They were later joined by Alison Darling, Jenny Rich, Linda Tiltsen and Jann Walsh.
Contract crews from local firm A and D Tree Services arrived along with a giant crane which was placed in the northbound lane to help with the removal of the large upper branches of the bum tree and the large blackbutt alongside it.
The two 18-year-olds were untied from their position and removed in tears by police, while their older counterparts remained at the base of the tree.
A stand-off ensued, contractors waiting to start work as police negotiated with the quartet, amid calls of shame from fellow protesters.
In the end three of the protesters agreed to leave the site, albeit under duress, while Ms Darling stood her ground, eventually being escorted away by police to a waiting paddy wagon amid cheers and jeers.
Although not officially arrested she was told she was "removed for her own safety" and if she returned to the bum tree she would be arrested.
Work started with the contractors using a cherry picker to reach the upper branches of the large tree with the crane enlisted to lower the cut limbs to the ground.
To howls of protest including the chant of "Shame, Shoalhaven City Council, Shame", "Shame, Joanna Gash, Shame", and another colourful but telling ditty directed at the Mayor and Gilmore MP Ann Sudmalis, the work continued, with the removed limbs shredded through a chipper.
Wildlife Rescue South Coast members checked a number of branches for any possible animals.
The protesters' worst fears were realised when a large hollow limb had a red bag placed over its end before being removed; an animal was clearly seen to jump from the log into the bag.
The limb was quickly lowered to the ground and the animal removed, while another in the hollow was also eventually removed from its hiding place.
The animals, which Wildlife Rescue South Coast members said were endangered greater gliders, a mother and a juvenile, were removed to a nearby location for care.
It is planned to relocate them back into the Seven Mile Beach National Park, in the hollow log from which they were removed, which will also be placed back into a tree in the park.
Work was delayed for over an hour but restarted and again two more animals were located in another hollow branch, this time believed to be sugar gliders.
Gerroa Environment Protection Society (GEPS) president Warren Holder, who has headed up the protest, likened watching its lopping to witnessing the harpooning of a majestic whale.
"It is such a large, significant creature," he said.
"Here today, gone tomorrow. It is just so sad."
Shoalhaven City Councillor Jim McCrudden has called on the Local Government Minister to sack Shoalhaven City Council over the bum tree issue.
Mr McCrudden believes an administrator should be appointed.
"I believe council should be sacked over this, the handling of the whole process.
"The actual removal of the bum tree is only one part of it.
"I was actually focused on the loss of canopy in the area but when the matter came up at council all we had was the tender to approve.
"I questioned about the lack of community consultation and moved a motion to try to get some but it was defeated and just swept away.
"The federal black spot funding calls for widespread consultation – it hasn't happened.
"We never received an environmental report into the matter.''
Shoalhaven Mayor Joanna Gash said Cr McCrudden could take whatever action he decided.
"Mr McCrudden has made a number of accusations. He tried to stop this work with the threat of a legal injunction but wasn't able to do that,'' she said.
"I think he should do what he feels he has to."
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The 100 Moments of TSU Athletics presented by Taco Bell® series continues by remembering the last undefeated season in Tennessee State football history.
In 1984, the Tigers finished the season 11-0 by setting a handful of offensive records that are still standing today.
The 1984 squad was coached by William Thomas in his first year as TSU. Under Thomas' guidance, the Tigers scored a school-record 450 points and 63 touchdowns.
The main scoring threat was quarterback Kenneth Biggles who tossed 24 touchdowns passes on the year and amassing 2,242 yards on the season. Quarterback Gilbert Renfroe also had a fine year, throwing for 18 scores as well. The two combined for a school-record 3,765 yards and 342.2 yards per game.
Most of the passes were caught by Barry Collins who hauled in 12 touchdowns on the season. Collins caught 59 passes total for 908 yards.
The TSU defense was also a stout group who intercepted a TSU record of 28 passes on the year.
Combining the two impressive units meant that TSU was on the good side of a handful of lopsided scores. In fact, the Tigers outscored opponents by a whopping 450-126 including a school-record 71-point victory over Kentucky State.
The team also boasted five All-Americans in Collins, James Derico, Herman Hunter, Carl McAfee and Roger Robinson.
Hunter was later drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the eleventh round of the 1985 NFL draft.
The 100 Moments of TSU Athletics presented by Taco Bell® highlights some of the greatest moments in honor of Tennessee State's centennial celebration. A new moment will be released each weekday for a total of 100. These moments were chosen by the TSU 100 Moments committee, which consists of alums from various departments. TSU has so many great moments, not all can be represented in these 100.
Sports Information Assistant Donnie Johnson contributed to this article.
Follow TSU Athletics on Facebook.com/TSUTigers and Twitter @TSU_Tigers.


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Ski & Snowboard Marketing Media Manager: Catch the Action
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The search found 3 results in 0.009 seconds.
A special electronic collection of articles from the Fall 2009 and Winter 2010 issues of Contexts on the topic of aging. Featuring Vincent J. Roscigno, Phyllis Moen, Eric Utne, Deborah Carr, Stacy Torres and the MacArthur Foundation Research Network on an Aging Society. 28 pages, March 2010.
Winter 2018, Vol. 17, No. 1
Features include "After Charlottesville", "Ethnonationalism and the Rise of Donald Trump", "Trump's Immigration Attacks, in Brief", "Making Protest Great Again", "Emasculation, Conservatism, and the 2016 Election", "Maintaining Supremacy by Blocking Affirmative Action", and "The Algorithmic Rise of the "Alt-Right."
As the COVID-19 pandemic progresses, governments around the world search for virus prevention techniques to reduce the spread of the illness.


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Sermon delivered July 15, 2007.
Have you ever heard someone say, "It doesn't make one iota of difference."? What does a person mean when they say that? It means, no matter what you do, it will not make the smallest difference in the outcome. This saying, like many other famous quotes, is rooted in the Sacred Scripture and this one comes from today's Gospel reading (Mt.5:14-19). Sometimes translated in verse 18 as jot (NKJV) or smallest letter (NIV), the word is correctly translated as "iota" (RSV). Jesus says, "Truly I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the law until all is accomplished."
Jesus goes on to say in verse 19, "Whoever then relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but he who does them and teaches them shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven." It appears that Jesus is teaching the exact opposite of the well-known saying for He implies that how we practice and teach the smallest part of the law does make a difference in our standing in the Kingdom of Heaven.
When Jesus says "Law", He is referring to the Torah or Mosaic Law, the commandments of God given to Moses (on tablets of stone [Exodus 24:12-18, 31:18, 32:15; Deuteronomy 9:9-11] and orally through His divine Word [Dueteronomy.31:19]; as recorded in Exodus 20-40; Leviticus 1-27; Numbers 1-9; Deuteronomy 1-34). Was Jesus saying that the letter of the Law must be observed without fail? If so, why did the Jerusalem Council as recorded in Acts 15 essentially make most of the law non-binding for Gentile Christian converts?
Answers may be found earlier in today's Gospel passage. In verse 17, Jesus says, "Think not that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfill them." Every Divine Liturgy, the priest essentially repeats Christ's words before the Prothesis (table of Oblation in the altar). While the people sing, "Blessed is the Name of the Lord ... ", the priest says, "Christ our God, You are the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets; You have fulfilled the divine plan of the Father; fill our hearts with joy and gladness, always, now and forever and to the ages of ages."
So Jesus Christ, the Divine Son and Word of God, embodies and expresses within His person, teachings, miracles and saving Passion, the whole of the Law and the Prophets. Another passage gives us further insight into this concept. In Matthew 22:34-40, Jesus answers the lawyer's question, "What is the great commandment in the Law?" by saying, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind and your neighbor as yourself." Jesus goes on to say that, "On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets." Loving God with everything you got and loving your neighbor is the essence of the Law. Jesus fulfills these two commandments perfectly in His words and actions.
Today's Gospel passage is preceded the Makarismoi or Beatitudes in verses 1-12 and followed by an extended discourse on the Law in verses 21-48. Looking at this larger context, we see that Jesus wants His disciples to understand the deeper meaning or spirit of the Torah/Law. This, of course, contradicted the Pharisaical approach of external legalism with regards to the Law. Thus, Jesus points to the problem of anger beyond the command to not murder (v.21-25). He raises the specter of lustful thoughts beyond the prohibition of adultery (v.27-30). He confronts the problem of no-fault divorce (v.31-32) and the integrity of our words beyond taking oaths (v.33-37). Finally, Jesus tells us not to return evil for evil (v.38-42) and go beyond loving your neighbor to showing love for your enemies and praying for those who persecute you (v.43-48).
Sohow do we view the Torah/Law of Moses today? We cannot allow this law to be forgotten or ignored because it directs us to patterns of thought, word and deed that are essential for healthy and whole relationships with God, our neighbor and ourselves. In fact, as St. Paul says, the Law is our tutor that brings us to Christ (Galatians 3:24).
As Orthodox Christians, we have a challenge. Our Church, in its Faith and Traditions continues to uphold ritual and law as guideposts to direct us to a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ and to more loving, caring and respectful relationships with each other. However, we, like the Pharisees and Sadducees of Jesus' time, are just as susceptible to fall into the temptation of external legalism. We can attend liturgy, fast and pray but still miss the boat in terms of the weightier matters of the law like justice and mercy. As Jesus says, we should practice justice, mercy and love without neglecting the rest of the Law (Matthew 23:23).
Fr. Richard Demetrius Andrews is the pastor of St. George Greek Orthodox Church in St. Paul, Minnesota. Fr. Andrews is the past president of Minnesota Eastern Orthodox Christian Clergy Association (MEOCCA), and a volunteer chaplain with the St. Paul Police Department.